“It’s the most important thing to really listen to your instincts. That’s what I was taught at a young age, and that’s what I still follow today.”
Native to the secluded mountain town of Pinetop, Arizona, the indie pop songstress Zella Day began her music career performing at the coffee shop her grandmother owned, the only place in town that offered live music. Moving to California at age seventeen, a place where she felt her lifestyle and songwriting could flourish, Day already has a careers worth of experience under her belt and is wise beyond her years, at twenty-one years young.
Interview by Andy Gorel
Photography by Saamuel Richard
Andy: You began singing at age six, playing guitar at age nine, and released an independent record at age 14. What about your upbringing as a child do you think sparked your passion for music?
Zella: I’ve always been a singer, just like any other little girl, I was singing Disney princess songs growing up. My mom was also a singer, she sang in a jazz standards band when we lived in Pinetop, so she was performing weekly around town. She was also involved with the coffee shop that my grandmother owned, which they ran together, called One More Coffee Shop, and it was the only place in town for live music. So I had this natural curiosity for music, and it just so happened that I was in the correct environment. As a child, the talent was kind of cultivated. It wasn’t like I was anything special or I was some type of savant or child genius. It was just that I had people around me, adults, parents, family, that had the correct tools to provide me with the incentive and environment to keep going, and keep practicing. It was amazing for me to be around musicians and the coffee shop because I saw what it meant perform, what went into it, and I wanted to be a part of it as a child.
Andy: Growing up in Pinetop, Arizona, what was it like developing as a musician in such a secluded town, and were there any challenges you faced when trying to express yourself musically?
Zella: I had a lot of advantages being isolated because I was so young. I played music, and there was nobody telling me that I couldn’t do it. There was nobody telling me how to do it. I got to express freely without being in a place like LA which I think sometimes as a kid, you’re surrounded by a lot of competition and a lot of kids that are chasing the same dream, and in Pinetop, I was the only one chasing that dream. So there were no rules and there were no confinements to what I was doing.
The only disadvantage was there was nowhere to really play. My grandmother died in 2002, and when that happened the coffee shop went under, so that venue was taken from me. So I had to travel for both lessons and venues. I started playing First Fridays in Phoenix when I was twelve/thirteen. So I guess the only disadvantage was that we had to travel far, and because I was so young and didn’t have my license yet, my mom took the responsibility of taking me to places that would help me grow, that being Phoenix where it’s the city and everything is available. That was the closest city to us.
Andy: I know how you feel there. I grew up two hours from New York and two hours from Philadelphia, so a lot of shows I wanted to see were two hours away. My parents were always supportive of bringing me to shows, and exposing me to music.
Zella: Yeah, I have to credit my parents. Without them I wouldn’t have had such a head start, because a lot of times, there are kids that are so talented, but you can’t do it by yourself, so I had parents that were available to help me succeed at such a young age, which I’m really lucky to have.
Andy: Was your family always supportive of your passion for and decision to pursue music?
Zella: Yeah. It was never a question. They essentially trusted the person that I am, and it was clear that I took music seriously, so there was no reason why I shouldn’t pursue it. The opportunities kept presenting themselves, and seeing me meeting the opportunities with hard work, they supported that. It wasn’t like music was something that happened for me overnight. They watched me put in a valiant effort, and in turn supported that.
Andy: Right. The term “overnight success” is the biggest joke ever. Even if you put out a single today, and it’s huge by tomorrow, there were thousands of hours of songwriting, dreaming, and even anything really, that went into making the finished product.
Zella: One hundred percent.
“I know the industry is something that you have to go into with a thick skin, and also a really strong idea and vision of who you are and what you want to be, and it will give you what you need.”
Andy: So, between fourteen and sixteen you were still living in Pinetop, but going to Nashville once a month for writing sessions. You weren’t happy with what came out of them and voiced that to the producers you were working with.
Zella: Well, there were two sides of that, because I spent about a year writing in Nashville. I would go out every month. My management company flew me out there, put me up in a hotel with my mom, and she would drive me to sessions for a full week. Those were so educational. I feel like I went to the best music college in the country. It was so hands-on and I was getting to see for myself what it meant to be a writer, what came with writing great songs, how you could have a full career just creating from your home and putting your music out there but not having to even perform it. There are so many different facets of the music industry, and I learned a lot of them from going to Nashville. So it was beautiful, and I definitely got to work on my craft of songwriting. I’m a storyteller, and being that young, I wasn’t fully formed yet. I’m still not fully formed, but it definitely helped me understand the art of songwriting by being there.
However, once it came time to really put down some of the tracks, and demo them, I didn’t have as much control as I would’ve liked to have had. There was a part of the music that just felt disconnected from me and what I wanted to be. So I was willing to be patient and let my sound form a little bit more before putting out a demo or an EP that I didn’t really believe in, and at a young age I was really just following my heart. So it happened that Nashville didn’t end up being the right place for me.
Andy: Props to you for keeping your artistic integrity at such a young age. What was it like navigating the industry as essentially a little girl with a vision and knack for songwriting?
Zella: The thing that’s helped me the most is that I have a great family. So I’ve had a support system, at the end of the day, that I can talk everything through with, understands what I’m doing, and has always believed in my future. I think it would have been much scarier if now that I’m twenty years old living in LA, if I came out here by myself, and was trying to figure out how to navigate alone. That would have been a different story. But I never felt alone, and I think that’s important. Especially being a young girl, or a young person in the industry, I was surrounded by so many people, mostly men that had years upon years of recording experience, and watching stars in the making, and seeing stars blow up. You know, Dan Huff who had worked with Taylor Swift, and all of this stuff. It’s the most important thing to really listen to your instincts. That’s what I was taught at a young age, and that’s what I still follow today. I know what’s right for myself, and the industry can be a really scary place if you let it be, if you let it take you over and start to believe in it more than yourself. I’ve never believed that the industry was going to hand me anything. I was never looking for anything to be served to me perfectly. I know the industry is something that you have to go into with a thick skin, and also a really strong idea and vision of who you are and what you want to be, and it will give you what you need. You just have to knock on the right doors and I was patient enough. So I think that with Kicker it shows, and it’s apparent that I grew a lot and I waited for my songs and sound to evolve into the right place where I was ready to make the introduction to the world, and to have people hear me for the first time in the right light.
Andy: How old were you when you officially moved from Pinetop to Los Angeles?
Zella: I moved out to Los Angeles with my sister and my mother when I was seventeen years old. I was living in Long Beach for two years, working at a restaurant, recording a couple times per week with Wally Gagel and Xandy Barry at Wax Studios, and then I moved to Silver Lake about two years ago. I’ve been in Silver Lake ever since and my career has really changed since being here in the city, because I’m around the lifestyle, I’m around my peers, I’m ten minutes away from the studio. I’m just way more accessible, and the pace has picked up since being here.
Andy: What was it like going from Pinetop, a secluded mountain town in Arizona, to one of the world’s creative capitols at such a young age to follow your dreams?
Zella: I definitely went through a chapter of moving to California. Like when I moved to Long Beach I felt really claustrophobic. I thought coming from Pinetop I was a big city girl. I had outgrown my small town, and I was ready to take on LA, and California just felt so right. And it did, but there was also that small town girl inside of me that was like “Holy shit. I hear people talking outside my window when I’m sleeping like what the fuck?” or “Oh my god I have neighbors,” or “Oh my gosh I can’t just water the lawn in my underwear.” Like that’s how I grew up. I definitely took Pinetop for granted in so many ways, and there’s music about that on Kicker. I think I went through a mild depression when I left, because everything was so new, and I felt a little bit displaced and nothing was familiar. It was probably a good time for me to write a record because I was so lost, and exposed to these new sensations and experiences. I was learning and growing so much, and it all came out on Kicker. Everything’s meant to be.
Andy: That’s how I felt when I first moved to Philadelphia. I went from literally being able to walk in my yard in my underwear to the middle of one of the country’s biggest cities.
Zella: Yeah, it’s crazy! It’s quite the change.
Andy: Yeah, being in the city, everything’s here at all times, which is great, and I’m ready, but sometimes you just want to chill, and it’s hard.
Zella: Yeah, I just want to hideaway in the silence, and that’s what Pinetop was. And the funny thing is I don’t think I could go back there now. I think a small quiet town would drive me insane, but I’ve found my happy medium here in LA. I have a place in a great neighborhood where I have a big back yard, it’s quiet and serene, and I feel like I can create without my neighbors listening to me. So I’ve figured out how to find my peace of mind in LA.
Andy: That’s definitely a big part, being able to create without your neighbors listening. It’s weird to think people are hearing what you’re doing when you’re trying to write.
Zella: Yeah, it’s a big deal. It just makes you so self-conscious, and you write shit [Laughs].
“I’m very inspired by the 60s and 70s era. I think it’s very important to look the way that you sound because there’s a fine line between sight and sound.”
Andy: Pretty much [Laughs]. Did the source of inspiration for your songs change once you moved to LA, and what was it like creating music in an area where there is virtually an endless amount of talented artists?
Zella: When I moved to California, and was recording out of Wax Studios, I was definitely creating to the best of my ability, because for the first time I was surrounded by people that were doing the same thing. It was definitely a kick in the ass, which was so healthy. I was hanging out a lot with Garrett Borns who just released a record, Dopamine, and I was around when he was in the studio, watching his process and witnessing what he was doing, and how talented he was. It was this revelation of “Okay, you aren’t the only one, Zella,” and as much as that was different and challenging for me, it was the healthiest thing for me to create a record that I feel like I did my best work on.
Andy: You and Garrett were roommates right?
Zella: Yeah! He recently moved out because he’s been touring so heavily that it didn’t make sense for him to pay rent for such a big space, just because he’s never here. So he got a place with his guitar player in Cypress Park, but I am still here at the place that we shared, and I have a dog, so the backyard is amazing and I’m doing anything I can to keep it. It was such a beautiful time that me and Garrett got to be here together because we really needed each other, as the completion of our records were both imminent, and happening, and we are both such good sounding boards for each other creatively. I really trust his opinion and he trusts mine. We want the best for one another. It was nice to have such a support system here in the house with me.
Andy: Ironically enough, I’ve actually been on BØRNS kick all week. He is also doing some pretty amazing stuff in the indie/pop world right now. Do you feel that living together has influenced each other’s music at all? So either you influencing his, him influencing yours, or both.
Zella: Yeah, Garrett and I always had a healthy division as far as keeping our sounds separate, and doing what we both set out to do in coming to LA. We’ve written together a few times, but as far as creating for our debut records, we really made sure we kind of took a step back and let one another do our thing, because it was important. He definitely always has inspired me… Garrett has always inspired me.
Andy: Yeah, as an aspiring artist he inspires me a ton as well. I sit there and listen to Dopamine and think “Wow. Why couldn’t I have written something like this?” He’s amazing.
Zella: Yeah sitting there with Garrett on the living room floor, listening to demos together, and talking about the message, the production, and how we see it on stage. We had all these conversations that were productive for both of us to be having at that time.
Andy: So you feel it was healthy artistically then, living with each other?
Zella: Absolutely.
Andy: Do you think it made both of you step up your game for your debut records?
Zella: Yeah, both of us did. We’ve never been competitive with each other, but at the same time, we’ve observed one another’s creative processes. But he’s so good, and I know he respects me just as much as I respect him, and it made me step up my game one hundred percent. I needed Garrett as a catalyst for Kicker.
Andy: Kicker explores a lot of the brighter and darker aspects of love and relationships. What influenced and/or inspired you to write about two contrasting angles of the same topic for your debut record?
Zella: The record has two sides to it like you said, the dark and the light. I experienced both sides when I came out to LA. The lighter side was me starting to explore what California has to offer me as a person and artist. At the time, as I was doing that, I fell into – and I say “fall” because I did fall – flat on my face – into a relationship where I was moving to Silver Lake, and dating someone who hurt me more than helped me. I felt more alone than I ever have in my entire life. But my music was there for me, and I hear a lot of artists say that. I really understood what that meant when I was going through that relationship. I taught myself a lot through hearing myself vent, listening back to my songs and demos, and it really helped me get out of that relationship. Kicker really saved me.
Andy: So Looking back on the independent record you released in 2009, Powered by Love, what kind of “love” were you writing about then, and how has its meaning changed in the songs you write today?
Zella: I started writing music at such a young age, and you can see and hear my transformation and evolution into a young woman. Everything that I go through, I write about. So my experiences are for everyone everywhere, to be seen and heard [Laughs]. Which is in a sense a little scary, but the love is the same because I’m so different today than I was a year ago, even.
The songs on Kicker even change in their meaning the more that I perform them. The more that I live with them, they start to take on different meanings in my life because I’m not in the same emotional place that I was last year when Kicker was released. Music is so interesting. It’s so fascinating. The messages and the love that I was experiencing at fifteen was new, and pure, and innocent in this way where I was oblivious to what it meant to be an independent woman living on my own, and needing different things from a partner, and redefining my idea of love, and really what that is. There are different characteristics that I look for now going through what I’ve gone through and having been with different people, and being here in the city where there are so many different people. I’m figuring myself out as far as what I’m looking for, and what I need.
Andy: So now with several tours and festivals under your belt, do you think the writing process for your next record will be different knowing there is an audience?
Zella: Yeah, one hundred percent. Kicker was created in a dark studio when I had just moved from Arizona and I was the new girl. I was the new girl in town, and nobody knew who I was [Laughs]. Anywhere! So I created that record just based on what I wanted to say for myself. I needed to get some things off my chest, hoping that people would relate to that. Now that I’ve played shows, and I’ve seen the faces in the audience, I know what people want to hear from me. I know what they connect with. Every show is in some shape or form, an experiment of how you take these people on a journey with you, what they need, and what they connect with live. My writing style has definitely changed since performing on stage in front of an audience with a band, and since having recognition. You know, from the blogosphere, and journalists, and people asking me about my music. It all works together and my writing is definitely setting me up for a different and more evolved sound.
Andy: You’ve also been branching out more into fashion and have been doing a lot of stuff in the music/fashion crossover world. Do you find any common influences or sources of inspiration among your musical and fashion design ideas?
Zella: Yeah, I do. Being from Arizona, I’m very inspired by the Southwest. I’m very inspired by the 60s and 70s era. I think it’s very important to look the way that you sound because there’s a fine line between sight and sound. They work together, and when you go to a show, and you have an idea of what the artist looks like in your head when you’re listening to them in your car, you want to believe it. You want to go there and you want the artist on stage to show you how they express themselves, and how it works in correlation to the music. So my fashion and the things that I wear are all a lifestyle, and it’s all my own little world of my artistic expression. I pay a lot of attention to, and really love getting to go on stage and getting to show people as much as I get to play for people, what it is that I love, in every sense.
Andy: You’ve also been working on a female-empowerment clothing line called “Headstrong Mama”, a name which you ripped straight from the lyrics of your hit single “Hypnotic”. Has fashion design always been another area of interest of yours, and what inspired you to create your own line?
Zella: Well I’ve done a few things in the past couple months, including the Headstrong Mama movement. I’ve also been designing a collection with Clea Bella, which is a small boutique out of Sunset Beach that I’ve done some work with before. But now I get to sit down in their studio and design pieces, and I’m completely taking over the creative direction of the collection. I get to direct and produce my own photo shoot and debut with the collection which is really exciting. So I’m sort of getting my fingers into, and my toes wet in that world.
The Headstrong Mama movement is something that I’ve been waiting for. I’ve been waiting for a way to get to know my fans even more than I do, so now that I had this idea for this movement where I encourage women to use Instagram – because I’m starting small, and that’s the platform where I feel like people are most occupied and involved in – to post a photo of whoever their “Headstrong Mama” is and to write out her story. I pick a couple of Headstrong Mamas per week, and feature them on the Headstrong Mama profile. Each month I am going to choose a Headstrong Mama to get free tickets to a show.
So it’s just the beginning, but I’m looking forward to this growing into something where I can start giving back. I have some charities in mind that I want to get involved with, and I think the Headstrong Mama campaign is a way to do that. I finally, now in my career, have enough leverage to help other people which is beautiful.
